1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to methods for facilitating and managing communications between individuals who are involved in a community of action or purpose. In one sense, aspects of the invention relate to such fields as electronic mail, word processing, data base management and other methods for facilitating the transaction of business between individuals and the management of data and communications related to such transactions.
In another, more important sense, this invention is a pioneering one which establishes a new field of managing business, social and personal communications by integrating state of the art computer and communication tools and methodologies within a new conceptual and methodological framework: managing communications by treating them as moves in conversations in a structured context which encourages participants to carry out their communications in a more meaningful, organized manner and promotes completion of conversations to the satisfaction of all of their participants.
This invention is based on the development of a precise and rigorous language of distinctions which is valid for observation and interpretation of what is happening in the whole gamut of human conversation and simultaneously forms the basis for a method for supporting, enhancing, and coordinating human conversation which can be carried out in a variety of computer and communication system environments.
2. Description of the Prior Art
1. Electronic Mail
The earliest tools for generating utterances, including both spoken and written manifestations of language, were writing implements, from the quill to the typewriter, to the modern word processor. None of these devices operate in accord with what speakers do in language, that is, with what speakers except or hope to accomplish with their utterances. They deal only with the form of utterances, as sequences of letters, figures, typographical marks, etc. There is no communication management, no helpful machine/human interaction which facilitates accomplishment of the purposes and goals of the communications being prepared.
Many devices have been invented for transmitting visible sequences of marks or audible sounds from one place to another, from the postal service to telephony, facsimile, and more recently, electronic mail systems.
A person who composes an utterance does so within a certain background of understanding as to what is being done. In the current prevalent practice in electronic mail, the relevant structure is the identification of sender and receiver and the times and places of sending and receipt, along with an unstructured natural-text phrase used by readers to identify and group the messages. The user of such a system is provided with choices of action that can be described in terms of this basic "who-where-when" structure. For example, the "Answer" option which is provided in many systems allows a response to be sent to the original sender, while "Forward" sends a copy of the message to a third party.
Some electronic mail systems incorporate various file management facilities such as assigning keyword attributes to files for automated retrieval, automatic aging of files to eliminate old messages, and sorting based on individual or combinational criteria such as sender, date, and the like. The effective use of these facilities is dependent on the ability of the user to integrate these facilities into a personal framework of organization of the work that the person does and the communications related to that work.
Electronic mail systems do not limit or structure the kinds of messages that may be sent, in accordance with either the content or context of previous messages. In particular, there is no assistance providing in structuring the flow of communications toward accomplishment of goals and results. The management of the communications is essentially left to the discretion and ability of the users of the system.
2. Computerized Procedure Management Systems (Systems for Managing Performance of Specified Tasks)
Some system designers have recognized the opportunity to use electronic computer and communication tools to facilitate and organize communications within organizations concerning standard procedures and standard forms. The simplest and most prevalent implementation of repetitive communications is with "forms" in the standard business sense. The existence of tools like a "purchase order" or an "invoice" derives from the existence of certain recurring communications (getting a supplier to send goods, requesting payment, etc.) in which the collection and transmission of relevant details has the same structure each time. Paper-based forms have been developed over centuries, and computer-based forms are prevalent in the current data-processing art.
In addition to standardized forms, there can also be standardized "procedures" in which a sequence of actions follows a regular pattern. For example, the standard procedure in a particular office on receipt of a purchase order can be to send one copy to the billing department, and on receipt of a credit authorization to send another copy to the shipping department. Such procedures have long been codified for human implementation in all kinds of organization.
Computer technology makes it possible to automate forms generation, processing and communication by embedding them as programs in data processing systems. Many computer systems, such as point of sale terminals, automated banking systems, inventory control systems, embody such procedures. A person using such a system communicates within the strict framework of the system and the limited options presented in accordance with the procedures embodied in the computer system. For example, on receiving a purchase order, a user's options may be to "send it through" or "refer it to accounting for a credit check."
3. Conversation Management Theory
In a 1981 Ph.D. thesis entitled "Management and Communication in the Office of the Future", Fernando Flores proposes a "theory of commitment and conversation" which "allows us to provide new guidelines for examining work in an office or organization." The thesis also contains suggestions for design of a prototype system for coordinating conversations based on a speech act model of conversations. This theoretical work provides a foundation for considering new approaches to use of electronic computer and communication technology to manage the flow of communications within a conversational network, but it does not provide a complete, practicable methodology for carrying out management of conversations.
The Flores thesis does not suggest an overall methodology which provides for managing conversations for declaring specific realizable possibilities as distinct from coordinating conversations related to commitments for some specific action. It does not address the concept of "permitted moves" in conversations of various types in various states with various starting and ending "incompletions" and depending upon the "role" of the participant. There are only limited suggestions in the Flores thesis of constructing and managing a data base of conversations and these do not provide a practicable methodology.